Centrifuge for continuously separating a lubricating liquid from metal shavings or the like



Jan. 30, 1968 c. R. STEIMEL 3,366,318

CENTRIFUGE FOR CONTINUOUSLY SEPARATING A LUBRICATING LIQUID FROM METALSHAVINGS OR THE LIKE Filed April 4, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 u o o a o o o13 v 26 l7 I f 7 l 22 I 20' 2o 23 27 r' @li i 42 i lN VE N TOR Car! Ml.f/lnu! BY Jan. 30, 1968 c. R. STEIMEL 3,366,318

CENTRIFUGE FOR CONTINUOUSLY SEPARATING A LUBRICATING LIQUID FROM METALSHAVINGS OR THE LIKE Filed April 4, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR[aha-44144 BY fiq iauzl he.

United States Patent Office Patented Jan. 30, 1968 ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A centrifuge for continuously separating a lubricating liquidfrom metal shavings or the like. This centrifuge includes first andsecond collecting means and means for imparting vibrations to thesecollecting means.

The present invention relates to a centrifuge for continuouslyseparating a lubricating liquid from metal shavings or the like.

It is one object of the present invention to provide for a centrifugefor the aforementioned purpose constructed and arranged in such a mannerthat the liquid separated 2! from the metal shavings as -well as thelatter are discharged from the centrifuge at an elevation to permit easytransportation of the discharged materials to a place of further use.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide for acentrifuge for the aforementioned purpose which has a relatively smallheight so that the material may be conveniently fed thereinto and sothat the space requirements of the centrifuge are relatively small.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide for acentrifuge for the aforementioned purpose in which the materials to beseparated are not only subjected to a centrifuging action but also to avibrating action so as to prevent clogging of the centrifuge and toimprove separation of the lubricating liquid from the shavings.

It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide for acentrifuge for the aforementioned purpose which is composed ofrelatively few and simple parts so that the centrifuge may bemanufactured at reasonable cost and will stand up trouble-free underextended use.

With these objects in view, the centrifuge according to to the presentinvention for continuously separating a lubricating liquid from metalshavings or the like mainly comprises support means, a motor having adrive shaft, elastic mounting means mounting the motor on the supportmeans with the drive shaft extending in substantially vertical directionand permitting the motor to vibrate transverse to its axis, asubstantially bell-shaped centrifugal drum having an upwardly wideningconical portion and a substantially cylindrical portion upwardlyprojecting therefrom and being formed at a junction of theaforementioned portions with openings for discharge of the lubricatingliquid therethrough, feeding means extending from the top toward butshort of the bottom of the drum for supplying shavings to the interiorof the latter, first collecting means surrounding the aforementionedopenings for collecting the liquid emanating from the latter and fordischarging the same from the cenvtrifuge, second collecting meanssurrounding the upper 'edge of the cylindrical portion of the drumradially outwardly spaced therefrom for collecting the shavingsdischarged by centrifugal action from the drum and for disrangedsubstantially coaxial with the drum and having an upper edge upwardlyspaced from the upper edge of the cylindrical portion of the drum and alower end adjacent to the bottom of the drum. The material is fed intothe upper open end of the funnel in a more or less continuous manner forinstance by a conveyor belt and in order to prevent clogging of thefunnel the latter is either subjected to continuous vibrations, or thefeeding means may include further a feed screw extending through thefunnel.

The bell-shaped centrifugal drum has a bottom having a centralsubstantially horizontal portion and an outer annular portion curvinggradually with a relatively large radius into the conical portion of thedrum. This shape of the drum will assure that the shavings fed throughthe funnel onto the central portion of the drum bottom will becentrifuged in radial outward direction and rise upwardly toward thelargest drum diameter when the drum is rotated at high speed forinstance with 1,000 to 1,400 revolutions per minute. The time duringwhich the shavings fed into the drum will remain therein will beinfluenced by the height of the cylindrical portion at the upper end ofthe drum. Of course the time will also depend on the circumferentialspeed of the drum and the amount of shavings fed per time unit into thedrum.

The lubricating liquid to be separated from the shavings rises also dueto the centrifugal action upwardly along the inner surface of theconical drum portion and will be discharged due to centrifugal actionthrough the openings provided at the junction between the conical andthe cylindrical drum portions. The liquid thus discharged from theinterior of the drum Will be collected by the first collecting means,which are preferably in the form of a casing surrounding the drum, andbe discharged from the casing through an outlet opening at the lower endthereof. The aforementioned openings through which the liquid isdischarged from the drum are preferably formed by an annular gap formedbetween radially outwardly extending flanges at the upper end of theconical portion and the lower end of the cylindrical portion of the drumwhich are held spaced from each other by appropriate spacer means whichmay be in the form of small annular discs located between the flangescircumferentially spaced from each other and through which screw boltsmay extend connecting the flanges to each other. In order to preventdischarge of shavings through this annular gap the latter is covered byfine mesh screen means, for instance by a strip of perforated sheetmetal, the inner surface of which is arranged flush with the innersurface of the drum.

The shavings rising beyond the upper edge of the cylindrical drumportion are flunk outwardly by centrifugal action and collected by thesecond collecting means which preferably include an annular baffle platesurrounding the upper edge of the cylindrical drum portion radiallyoutwardly spaced therefrom and chute means extending downwardly from theannular bafile plate. The chute means are preferably fixedly connectedto the casing in which the oil is collected and this casing ispreferably fixed to the elastically mounted motor so that all vibrationsimparted to the motor by an unbalance of the material fed into the drumwill also be transmitted to the chute means. This will prevent anyclogging of the chute means without requiring separate means forvibrating the latter.

The centrifuge according to the present invention has a relatively smallheight, since the centrifugal drum is mounted directly on the upper endof the vertical shaft of the motor spaced from the latter by thesmallest possible distance, and since the funnel is arranged at leastwith a major portion thereof in the interior of the centrifugal drum.Since the shavings are discharged from the drum at a relatively highelevation, the lower end of the chute can be arranged well above thefloor on which the centrifuge is mounted so that a conveyor belt may bearranged below the outlet end of the chute for conveniently transportingthe shavings separated from the oil to a place of further use.

Likewise the lubricating liquid is discharged at a relatively highelevation so that the same can be conveniently discharged in a containerarranged on the side of the centrifuge.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for theinvention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. Theinvention itself, however, both as to its construction and its methodfor operating, together with additional object and advantages thereof,will be best understood from the following description of specificembodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is an axial cross section through one embodiment of a centrifugeaccording to the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is an axial cross section through asecond embodiment.

Referring now to the drawing, and more specifically to FIG. 1 of thesame, it will be seen that the centrifuge according to the presentinvention comprises a motor 2 having a substantially vertical driveshaft 1 to the upper end of which a substantially bell-shapedcentrifugal drum 3 is connected for rotation with the drive shaft.Elastic mounting means are provided'for mounting the motor with thedrive shaft extending in substantially vertical direction and permittingthe motor to vibrate transverse to its axis. The elastic mounting meansmay include a flange 4 fixed to the lower end of the motor 2, a secondflange 5 abutting against theflange 4 coaxially arranged with respectthereto and fixed thereto in any convenient manner and carrying fixedlyconnected thereto a downwardly projecting central stud shaft 6surrounded by a plurality of rubber rings 7 which are housed in a socketmounted in the base-8 of the centrifuge. The rubber rings 7 can becompressed by means of a clamping flange 9 screwed into the upper end ofthe socket in which the rubber rings are housed.

The end of the drive shaft 1 projecting upwardly beyond the motor 2preferably tapers slightly in upward direction and the free end thereofis provided with an outer screw thread. An internally threaded cup 10located in a central cavity of the bottom wall 3 of the drum 3 isscrewed onto the threaded end of the shaft 1 so as to press a tubularextension extending downwardly from the bottom wall of the drum onto thetapering shaft portion and to hold the drum 3 on the shaft 1 forrotation therewith. The cup 10 has an upper horizontal surface whichforms the central portion of the bottom 3' of the drum. The drum bottom3' curves outwardly and upwardly along a radius of relatively largecurvature to blend into the lower end of the conical portion 3" of thedrum. The conical portion 3" has a cone angle between and 40 degrees. Asubstantially cylindrical drum portion 11 projects upwardly from theupper edge of the conical portion 3" and a plurality of openings 12 arearranged at the junction of the two portions to permit discharge of thelubricating liquid to be separated from metal shavings in the drum fromthe interior of the latter. An annular flange 14 projects radiallyoutwardly from the upper edge of the conical portion 3" of the drum anda corresponding annular flange 13 is provided on the lower edge of thecylindrical portion 11 and a plurality of annular spacer discs 15 ofsmall diameter are placed angularly spaced from each other between theflanges 13 and 14, and screw bolts extending through the spacer discs 15connect the flanges 13 and 14 fixedly to each other so that theaforementioned openings are constituted by the gap formed between theflanges 13 and 14 held separated from each other by the spacer discs 15.An annular sheet metal strip 16 formed with a great number of smallopenings therethrough is arranged in a corresponding groove formed inthe inner surface of the drum so that the inner surface of the strip 16is substantially flush with the inner drum surface covers the 7 gap 12to prevent escape of shavings by centrifugal action through this gap. 7

The cylindrical drum portion 11 is provided along its upper edgelikewise with an outwardly projecting annular flange 17 over which theshavings separated from the oil will be discharged by centrifugalaction.

The liquid discharged through the openings or the gap 12 will becollected by first collecting means or casing 20, preferably constitutedby a casing wall 22 surrounding the drum outwardly spaced therefrom andprovided with a bottom 23 which is slightly inclined toward a dischargeconduit 21 communicating with the interior of the casing 20. The casingwall 22 is connected through the bottom 23 and through a plurality ofangularly displaced straps 24 to a cylindrical member 25 surrounding themotor 2 and connected thereto for vibrationtherewith by members 20. Aradially inwardly extending flange 19 is fixed to the upper end of thecasing wall 22 and the inner edge of the flange 13 is preferably locatedslightly inwardly of the outer edge of the flange 17 to prevent anyshaving passing over the flange 17 to drop into the casing 20.

Second collecting means surround the upper edge of the cylindricalportion 11 of the drum 3 radially outwardly spaced therefrom forcollecting the shavings discharged by centrifugal action over the flange17. The second collecting means preferably include an annular baffleplate 26 extending upwardly beyond the flange 17 and beyond the upperedge of the casing 20 radially outwardly spaced from the latter andsteeply inclined chute means 27 extending downwardly from the baffleplate 26 toward a laterally arranged discharge opening 28. The annularbaffle plate 26 is connected over the chute and through studs 29 to thewall 22 of the casing 20 so as to be likewise carried by the elasticmounting of the motor. The baflle plate 26 is preferably reinforced inthe region of the elevation of the flange 17 by an exchangeable annularinsert 30.

A cover 31 is fixed in any convenient manner to the upper edge of theba-flle plate 26. The cover 31 is formed with a central opening throughwhich feeding means in the form of a funnel 32 extend for feedingmaterial into the interior of the drum 3. The funnel 32 is preferablyarranged coaxially with the drum and has an upper edge upwardly spacedfrom the upper edge of the cylindrical each other so that vibrationsimparted to the cover 31 will be transmitted in amplified manner to thefunnel 32. A grating 34 extends transversely through the funnel 32 inthe upper region of the latter to prevent entrance of large parts intothe funnel. A central insert 35 having preferably a conical upper end isarranged in the lower part of the funnel 32 connected by a plurality ofangularly displaced straps theretoto limit passage of shavings throughthe funnel and to provide a substantially uniform distribution of theshavings at the lower funnel end. The amount of shavings which may passthrough 'thefunnel 32 may be further limited by placing correspondinglyshaped caps on the insert 35. The centrifugal drum 3 may be adapted tothe kind of shavings processed therein and to the desired degree ofseparating the lubricating liquid from the shavings by exchanging thecylindrical portion 11 of the drum by cylindrical portions of differentheight. The parts of the centrifuge which are carried by the elasticmounting means 6, 7 and 9 are surrounded by an outer casing wall36 whichextends upwardly from the base not quite up to the cover 31 and theupper end portion 37 of the casing wall 36 is surrounded by a downwardlyextending annular flange 38 connected to the 1 peripheral edge of thecover 31. An insert 40 of elastic material, for instance foam rubber, islocated between the baflle plate 26 and the wall 36 of the outer casingwhich has preferably a square cross section. The elastic insert 40 willdampen the vibrations of the baflle plate 26 and the elements connectedthereto and at the same time prevent rotation of the baflle plate 26 andthe elements fixed thereto.

To assure sufficient vibration of the battle plate 26 and the chutemeans 27 connected thereto as well as the funnel 32, an unbalancingweight 41 may be connected to the flange 14 of the drum 3. Theunbalancing weight 41 is preferably exchangeably connected to theflange, for instance by being screwed thereto, and by exchanging theunbalancing weight 41 against weights having a greater or smaller massit is possible to obtain a vibration which will assure optimum dischargeof the shavings. On the other hand, to prevent excessive vibrations ofthe drum 3 and the elements connected thereto, a lever 42 is fixed tothe flange 5 radially projecting therefrom and the lever 42 carries atits" outer end an adjustable contact member adapted to cooperate withthe switch 43 mounted on the base 8 and connected in the circuit of themotor 2 to switch off the latter when the switch 43 is actuated by thecontact member on the arm 42.

A conveyor belt is arranged above the upper end of the funnel 32 forcontinuously feeding shavings impregnated with lubricating liquid intothe latter and another conveyor belt may be located beneath the outletopening 28 of the chute means to transport the shavings separated fromlubricating fluid away from the centrifuge.

The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2 differs from the above describedembodiment in that the cover 31' is not carried by the vibrating baflleplate 26, but in this embodiment the cover 31' is fixedly connected tothe upper edge of the outer casing wall 36. Furthermore, in thisembodiment, the funnel 32' extends through the central opening of thecover 31 fixedly connected thereto for instance by being welded theretoalong the upper edge thereof. Furthermore, a feed screw 50 extendsthrough the funnel 32 up to the lower end 51 of the latter. The diameterof the lower funnel 51 is substantially equal to the diameter of thefeed screw 50. The drive motor 52 for the feed screw 50 is preferablycarried by a bracket 53 fixed to and projecting upwardly from the cover31'. The feed screw 50 may be inclined to the axis of the funnel 32' inthe manner as shown in FIG. 2. Otherwise, the construction of theembodiment shown in FIG. 2 is substantially the same as the embodimentdescribed above in connection with FIG. 1.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or twoor more together, may also find a useful application in other types ofcentrifuges differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in acentrifuge for continuously separating a lubricating liquid from metalshavings or the like, it is not intended to be limited to the detailsshown, since various modifications and structural changes may be madewithout departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist ofthe present invention that others can by applying current knowledgereadily adapt it for various applications without omitting featuresthat, from the standpoint of prior art fairly constitute essentialcharacteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention andtherefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehendedwithin the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A centrifuge for continuously separating a lubricating liquid frommetal shavings or the like, comprising, in combination, support means; amotor having a drive shaft; elastic mounting means mounting said motoron said support means with the drive shaft extending in substantiallyvertical direction and permitting said motor to vibrate transverse toits axis; a substantially bell-shaped centrifugal drum having anupwardly widening conical portion and a substantially cylindricalportion upwardly projecting" therefrom, said drum being formed at thejunction of said portions with openings for the discharge of the liquid;feeding means extending into the drum for supplying shavings impregnatedwith a lubricating liquid to the interior of the latter; firstcollecting means surrounding said openings for collecting the liquidemanating from the latter and for discharging the liquid from thecentrifuge; second collecting means surrounding the upper edge of saidcylindrical portion of said drum radially outwardly spaced therefrom forcollecting the shavings discharged by centrifugal action from the drumand for the discharging the shavings from the centrifuge; and meansconnected to at least one of said collecting means for impartingvibrations to said first and second collecting means.

2. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 1, wherein said conical portion ofthe drum has an upwardly extending flange at the upper end thereof andsaid cylindrical portion has at least at the lower end thereof anoutwardly extending flange facing that of said conical portion, andincluding spacer means connected to said flanges for holding the sameaxially spaced from each other to form a gap between said flangesconstituting said openings for the discharge of liquid from the interiorof said drum, and including fine mesh screen means covering said gap.

3. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 1 and including an unbalancingweight eccentrically fixed to said drum to increase vibrations of themotor and the drum carried thereby, and safety switch means cooperatingwith said motor to switch oif the latter when said vibrations exceed apredetermined maximum.

4. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 1, wherein said feeding meansinclude a funnel arranged substantially coaxially with said drum andhaving an upper edge upwardly spaced from the upper edge of saidcylindrical portion of said drum and a lower end adjacent to the bottomof said drum upwardly spaced therefrom.

5. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 4, wherein said feeding meansinclude further a feed screw extending through said funnel.

6. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 1, wherein said first collectingmeans comprises a casing surrounding said drum and being formed with adischarge opening at the lower portion thereof, and wherein said secondcollecting means comprises an annular baflie plate extending upwardlybeyond said upper edge of said cylindrical portion of said drum andbeyond the top of said casing radially outwardly spaced therefrom, andchute means fixed to and extending downwardly from said baffle plate andcarried by said casing.

7. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 6, wherein said means forimparting vibrations to said first and said second collecting meansinclude rigid connecting means connecting said casing to said motor sothat vibrations of said motor due to unbalance of said drum and thematerial therein will be transmitted to said casing, said baflle plateand said chute means.

8. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 6, and including an outer casingfixed to said support means and surrounding said baflle plate and saidchute means outwardly spaced therefrom to define an annular gap withsaid baffle plate, and an annular insert of elastic material located inand filling said gap.

9. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 8, and including a cover fixed toand extending over said baffie plate abutting against the upper edge ofthe latter, said cover being formed with a central opening therethrough,wherein said feeding means include a funnel arranged substantiallycoaxially with said drum and extending with clearance through theopening in said cover into said drum and having a lower end adjacent tothe bottom of said drum upwardly spaced therefrom, and includingresilient means mounting said funnel on said cover so that said, funnelmay vibrate relative to said cover.

10. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 8', and including a coverextending transversely overthe upper edge of said outercasing fixedthereto, said coverbeingformed with a central opening, wherein saidfeeding means include a funnel arranged substantially coaxially withsaid drum and having an upper edge fixed tov said cover about saidopening and a lower end adjacent to the bottom of said drum upwardlyspaced therefrom, and a feed screw carried by said cover and extendinglongitudinally through said funnel.

11. A centrifuge as set forth in claim 6, and including a cover fixed toand extending over said baflle plate abutting against the upper edge ofthe latter, said cover being formed with a central opening, and whereinsaid feeding means include a funnel arranged substantially coaxiallywith the drum and having an upper edge substantially at the elevation ofsaidcover and a lower end ad-t jacent to the bottom of said drumupwardly spaced there-r References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,438,76812/1922 Lapham 233-1 1,946,725 2/ 1934 Andrews et al 210l44 2,161,476 6/1939 Leja 233-3v 2,624,464 1/1953 Morrison 21014.4 2,895,023 7/ 1959Blurn.

HENRY T. KLINKSIEK, Primary Examiner.

